Have you been diagnosed with thyroid disease? What do you change first?
Your diet should be the first thing you change.
I completely understand how overwhelming this may seem especially if you’re hypothyroid— you’re exhausted, moody and just want to crawl under the covers. I’ve been there. But, if you make some slow changes to the foods you’re eating, you could start getting that energy back sooner than expected.
Why should you change your diet? Because the foods you eat directly affect your endocrine system. The fats, carbs, proteins, vitamins, minerals, etc. all play a role in your disease and symptoms. When given the proper nutrients, our bodies can begin the healing process.
How do you get started when you’re completely exhausted?
Here are two steps to begin:
1. Add one extra vegetable to your plate at each meal.
2. Get rid of unhealthy fats (canola oil, corn oil, vegetable oil, soy oil, margarine, and any other processed fat/oil) and replace them with healthy saturated fats like coconut oil, organic butter, ghee, lard, tallow, or duck fat.
The right fats in the diet can feed our metabolism at a cellular level and give our bodies the nourishment they need to assimilate vitamins from the foods we’re eating. That may start to give you some much needed energy.
A tablespoon at each meal is a good place to start. Some people need a bit more and some need a bit less. Add the healthy fats to your diet, see you how feel, and adjust for your body.
After you’ve successfully added one extra vegetable at each meal and gotten rid of unhealthy fats (it’s ok if this takes a while!), then you should start working to remove gluten from your diet.
Here are some of my favorite gluten-free recipes:
Crock Pot Chicken Fajita Bowl
Chicken Stew with Butternut Squash and Kale
And, if you need a whole book full of gluten-free recipes, check out The Grain-Free Family Table. If you have other food intolerances, click here to see a list of recipes by dietary need.
Do you think you can take the first step today? What do you think will be your biggest obstacle? Please comment below so we can all discuss and encourage one another!
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